Agenda - Council - 10/10/1995 - Laserfiche WebLink

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61~69807~5 HIGHLAND CHaTEaU HCC 8~9 PO~ OCT 10 '~5 13:4~ October 10, 1995 Members of the City Council City of Ramsey 15153 Nowthen Boulevard N.W. Rarasey, MN 55303 Re: Position Paper In Absentia - Snowmobile Ordinance Amendment To the members of the City Council: I am directing this letter in absentia to the members of the City Council, as a member of the Snowmobile Committee, representing my response to the October 6, 1995 memorandum from Jo Thieling, regarding amion relating to snowraobiling in the City of Ramsey. My understanding of the memorandum and its attachment is that the only proposed change in the snowmobile ordinance is the amendment providing for sanctions applied to violators of the existing ordinance. The memorandum is the only follow-up correspondence I have received as a member of the snowmobile committee since its last meeting so I am assuming that the only l~oposed change in our city's snowmobile ordinance is the proposed amendment. If this is indeed true, then the City Council will not respond to the cry of the citizens of Ramsey as evinced from testimony given at previous committee meetings and other communiques to city offices. If I am mistaken and there exists a substantial revision of the current snowmobile ordinance, then this letter should be ignored. Without substantial revision, the cun'ent ordinance does not protect private property and it does not protect the safety of citizens on their private property. Without substantial revision, the current ordinance and the proposed amendment do NOTHING to change an existing problem; a problem so significant that a committee of citizens was formed by city officials to investigate options and offer recommendations. The members of the City Council need only to read the transcripts from the snowmobile committee meetings and other correspondence forwarded to the city offices on this issue to realize that there is much to do toward the resolution of the issue. Every winter, I become quite concerned about the safety of our daughter and other neighborhood children as they play on our properties, especially near the street. In our area of the city the lots are large; many are quite wooded, providing, tempting allure for snowmobilers to trespass into our properties without permission, or, traversing across the free-access footage nearer the street Last winter, I laid some dead ~'ee limbs across snowmobile trails at the edge of our property to discourage the machines from crossing the length of our lot, destroying landscaping, damaging our driveway and jeopardizing the safety of children at play. A day later I was visited by a member of our city police department and ordered to move the tree limbs or face consequences as a snowmobiler had filed a complaint with the city indicating I had violated their right to free access. Given the existing ordinance, I was in violation of the law. AMAZING, isn't it! I live in a CITY, on a CITY street, in a home on a CITY lot and I pay CITY property taxes. Yet, a snowmobile has free access across the length of my property the borders a CITY street. The City of Ramsey is just that, a city. We are no longer a township or village sprawling with vast acres of agricultural and recreational property. We are a growing CITY of paved streets and res/denfial development. We do not permit the variety of motorized and non-motorized vehicles to access our front lawns throughout the year. Why must we continue to permit snowmobiles unwanted free access to personal property where they inflict damage and are a threat to safety? I urge the members of our City Council to support a revised ordinance that prohibits snowmobiling on any property within city limits unless written authorization is obtained from the property owner. Thank you. Mark E. Anderson 6060 173rd Ave N.W. Ramsey, MN 55303